Volunteerism: How and why to do it, according to Dr. Eileen Barrett

PHILADELPHIA – Eileen Barrett, MD, explained why she volunteers and gave examples of ways she has used her physician training and other expertise to help several communities.

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“I think what we get out of it is the feeling of our commitment to our sense of purpose and mission, and you just feel great when you’re giving, and then you meet these really remarkable people who do really, really remarkable things. ... It’s tremendously inspiring,” Dr. Barrett said in a video interview at the annual meeting of the American College of Physicians. She is a hospitalist at the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, and serves on the ACP Board of Regents.

In addition, Dr. Barrett has done disaster relief work in West Africa, provided patient care to refugees in a hospital on the Thailand side of the Thailand-Myanmar border, and even helped bring organization to a public radio station in rural New Mexico.

She also described some opportunities available to internists who are trying to get their feet wet in volunteering that are available through the organizations, Health Volunteers Overseas and the Maven Project.